


Duplicity

by deebeebird



Category: Overwatch (Video Game)
Genre: Blackwatch Era, Conversations, Gen, Mind Games, Moral Ambiguity, Overwatch Retribution
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-19
Updated: 2018-06-19
Packaged: 2019-05-25 14:02:29
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,470
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14978693
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/deebeebird/pseuds/deebeebird
Summary: In which Gabriel and Moira prepare before Venice, and in which Genji and Moira discuss the aftermath of Venice.





	Duplicity

**Author's Note:**

> Day 3 of Blackwatch Week--I chose to highlight both prompts, "Smoke" and "Mirrors."

_Before_

“So it seems you have a plan.”

Gabriel looked up from the shotgun he was cleaning to find that Moira had joined him at the window. With a sigh, he tossed the cloth aside.

“It seems I do,” he agreed. The doctor looked past him, studying Venice’s landscape below. The sun was slowly growing lower in the sky, and they both knew that they were running out of time for second thoughts.

“I don’t envy you, Gabriel,” Moira said after a moment of contemplation. “You’ll be the face of any decisions made here tonight, regardless of whether or not they’re yours. I’ve always been glad to avoid the publicity of it all.”

“That’s why you’re with us, and not sharing the spotlight with Jack,” Gabriel scoffed, returning to his weapon. “Shouldn’t you be checking up on the others?”

“I’ve already made sure they’re clear for a fight,” Moira assured him. “They’re in good spirits. Genji believes it should be an easy fight. Jesse...is displeased that we plan to take Antonio alive, but he understands the rationale, which is all we can hope for.” She took a seat beside him now, her fingernails clacking quietly when she drummed them on the table. “What about you?”

“What _about_ me?”

“What are you thinking?” Now Gabriel returned his gaze to the doctor, who was eyeing him intently as she continued. “Do you believe we’ll succeed?” The commander raised an eyebrow at her.

“Of course I do,” he replied. “We wouldn’t be getting ready to go if I didn’t. Why? Are you worried?” Moira shrugged, returning her gaze to the window.

“Not about our success,” she began. “I have full faith that we’ll do what we set out to do. My concern is with what comes next.”

“How do you figure?” There was a hint of hesitation in Gabriel’s voice, just enough for Moira to catch.

“What do we know about Antonio?” she asked now. “We know that he has power. Influence. We know he has friends in every sector of Italian public life, and more friends beyond Italy’s borders. We know he has eyes on Overwatch, and—judging by his choice of targets in Rome—he has eyes on Blackwatch especially.” She had Gabriel’s full attention now, and she shook her head bitterly. “My concern, commander, is that what we do here tonight is simply a delay. We don’t know what backup plans he has in case of his capture. We don’t know how long we will be able to hold him before his friends come to his rescue. And if we _can’t_ hold him, we run the risk of having him go underground.” The commander sat in silence, his shotgun all but forgotten as he mulled it over.

“What are you suggesting, Moira?” he finally asked. “You wouldn’t be saying all this if you didn’t have an alternative.”

“You’re the commander here, Gabriel,” Moira replied simply. “I’m simply reminding you that men like Antonio always expect the law to catch up with them. But men like Antonio also tend to think themselves untouchable. They never expect to die.” She rose to her feet, already starting for the door as she left Gabriel with one more comment. “Jack asked you what would help Overwatch keep the world safe. Ask yourself, Gabriel, if the world is safer when it includes the man who masterminded the attack in Rome.” The door snapped closed behind her, leaving the air around Gabriel tense with a question he would later wish he asked.

_How do you know what Jack said?_

* * *

 

_After_

“Doctor.”

Back within the familiar chill of her lab, Moira looked up from her equipment to find Genji lingering in the doorway, his eyes glowing faintly but unreadable. She motioned for him to enter, already returning to her repairs all the same.

“Are you well, Genji?” she asked. “I told Reyes before we left for Venice that I was worried about bringing you. I understand Dr. Ziegler replaced some of your cybernetics recently.”

“I am in no more pain than usual,” Genji replied pointedly, taking a seat at the other side of the table. “How do you believe the mission went?” Moira raised an eyebrow at him, pushing her project aside so that she could make proper eye contact.

“Shouldn’t Gabriel be the one asking me that?”

“The commander is still in his debriefing session. Winston told me he believes it will take most of the night,” Genji explained before leaning forward to prop his elbows on the table. “I am not asking you in any professional sense, Dr. O’Deorain. Just as an…interested colleague.” Moira scoffed, leveling the younger agent with a cool stare.

“I have never been interested in these games Blackwatch likes to play, Mr. Shimada,” she informed him. “If you’re saying something, then say it.”

“Very well.” Genji was glaring openly now, his gaze never wavering even under Moira’s scrutiny. “You may not be interested in Blackwatch’s games, doctor, but I believe you are playing your own. What did you have to gain from convincing the commander to kill Antonio?” Moira smiled wryly. Genji was quiet, often angry, but she had never doubted the boy’s intelligence. She had counted on him turning his suspicion on her eventually.

“You were there, Genji. You saw him pull the trigger of his own accord,” she said.

“After convincing McCree that bringing him in alive was the better option,” Genji shot back. “After making us sit in Venice, staking out the compound until we had an opening to bring him in alive. The commander is hardly an impulsive man. And yet, you spoke to him alone before the mission, and suddenly he sings a different tune.”

“I seem to recall you telling the commander that you agreed with his decision,” Moira remarked. Genji leaned back in his chair and crossed his arms.

“I _do_ agree with his decision. I just don’t believe it was truly _his_ decision.”

“Where are you going with this, Mr. Shimada?” Moira was growing irritable—it was late, and she had hoped to finish repairs on her equipment without having to talk in circles with Blackwatch’s resident cybernetic upstart. “What do you want?”

“I want to understand,” Genji replied simply. “For all your cryptic talk, you aren’t so difficult to figure out, doctor. You want to learn. You want to move forward. You hate anything that stands in the way of that.” He sat up straight again, his gaze cold. “I fail to see how it matters to you whether Antonio lives or dies.”

“Perhaps he was simply a dangerous man, whose threat to us and the rest of Overwatch died with him.”

“Danger has never been a concern of yours before,” Genji argued with a short laugh. Moira rose to her feet, her eyes flashing dangerously.

“Unnecessary, useless loss of life has _always_ been a concern of mine,” she snarled. Genji leaned back slightly in his chair—he had never seen the doctor outright lose her temper. “I will not be lectured by you, Genji. I will gladly admit to encouraging Gabriel to kill Antonio, because it was the proper thing to do. How much progress was lost when the Rome facility was destroyed? How many minds will not unlock their full potential?” In the silence that followed, Moira pushed away a stray hair that had fallen out of place, and Genji eyed her, perplexed.

“So…what?” he finally asked. “You wanted him dead because you didn’t like what he stood for?”

“He stood for nothing but his own gain,” Moira replied bluntly. “His death means that we can turn to foes who stand for more. Vialli. Maximilien. Doomfist. Worthy adversaries.” Her characteristic smirk returned as she took in Genji. “You look confused, but you’ve been seeking out fights ever since you started walking again. It should hardly surprise you that I do the same.”

“I suppose not.” Genji stood abruptly, his eyes down. “Thank you for the information, doctor.”

“Do you plan to tell somebody about this little chat of ours?” Moira asked, turning her attention back to her equipment. To her private surprise, Genji scoffed.

“Why would I?” He started for the door. “You said so yourself. You did the _proper_ thing.” He had barely reached the doorknob when Moira interrupted him.

“Genji?” He turned back to find her seated again, her face illuminated by the soft glow of her healing tech. “Overwatch is a series of games. You may know Blackwatch’s, and you may know mine, but understand that the rules are always changing. And they are everywhere. I hope you play the others so… _commendably._ ” Underneath his mask, Genji smiled wryly.

“I will,” he assured her. “I may not be as fast on my feet as I used to be…but I’m still faster than most.”


End file.
